LONDON – Despite the government’s measures to stem the tide of immigration and discourage international students, the country’s top advisory committee has advised against ending the Graduate Visa route (post-study visa).
The Migration Advisory Committee was tasked by the government to review the visas; however, it has responded that there is no widespread evidence a post-study visa for international students is being “abused”.
The Migration Advisory Committee has recommended that the visa attracts students to the UK and should stay in place, warning that if it is terminated, universities would lose income from international students’ fees and have to cut courses.
The recommendation is important against the backdrop of the fact that universities are increasingly relying on international students, who pay more in terms of fees than those from the UK.
The visa is amongst the most sought-after by international students as they are not required to have a job or earn a particular salary to be eligible for the visa.
The visa was introduced in 2021 as part of a plan to recruit the “brightest and best” students from around the world; however, recent measures by the government also brought it into focus to review it.
As far as the statistics are concerned, 114,000 graduate-route visas were granted for international students last year, and a further 30,000 for their dependants.
Advising the government against ending the visa, Prof Brian Bell, who chairs the MAC, stated that the route was a key way of attracting international students and should remain as it is.
“The fees that these students pay help universities to cover the losses they make in teaching British students and doing research,” he said.
“Without those students, many universities would need to shrink and less research would be done,” Bell added.
A report by MAC elaborates that courses that cost the most to run, such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects, would become “less financially viable” and could impact the availability of these courses to domestic students.
Interestingly, the government had asked the MAC to review the route and after the ‘surprising’ report, it said it was considering the findings “very closely”.
The government of Rishi Sunak introduced tougher rules for international students this year, which it said aimed to help “slash migration”. As part of the measures, the government also banned international students from bringing in dependents with few exceptions.
In line with the same policy to reduce net migration nd discourage international students, the government had sought review and after the fresh report, it seems that the government might not be tinkering with the Graduate Visa route.
